[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 145 (Friday, July 29, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43838-43839]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-4061]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. 04-081-2]


Notice of Availability of a Document Concerning the 
Identification of EU Administrative Units

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that we are finalizing, with minor 
changes, a draft document that had been prepared by the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service to identify the smallest administrative 
jurisdictions within 11 Member States of the European Union that we 
would consider ``regions'' in the event of future animal disease 
outbreaks. The draft document referred to these jurisdictions as 
``administrative units'' and also reevaluated the administrative units 
already identified for Italy.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Chip Wells, Senior Staff 
Veterinarian, Regionalization Evaluation Services Staff, National 
Center for Import and Export, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 38, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-4356.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On April 21, 2005, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 
(APHIS) published in the Federal Register a notice (70 FR 20733-20734, 
Docket No. 04-081-1) in which we announced the availability of, and 
requested comments on, a draft document entitled ``APHIS Considerations 
on the Identification of Administrative Units for Certain Member States 
of the European Union.'' This draft document identified the smallest 
administrative jurisdictions within 11 Member States of the European 
Union (EU) that we would consider ``regions'' in the event of future 
animal disease outbreaks. In the draft document we referred to those 
regions as ``administrative units'' (AUs). These Member States are: 
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, the 
Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. We also 
reevaluated the AUs already identified for Italy.
    Comments on the draft document were required to be received on or 
before June 20, 2005. We received one comment by that date, from the 
European Communities (EC). The EC was generally supportive of the draft 
document, however they requested confirmation that APHIS intends to 
implement regionalization of Member States of the EU to the AU level 
for other animal diseases in addition to classical swine fever. As 
stated in the notice, the concept of regionalization to the AU level is 
not disease-specific and would apply for all animal diseases.
    The EC also requested that APHIS identify AUs in the 10 new EU 
Member States which APHIS would consider the smallest possible 
administrative jurisdiction with effective control over animal movement 
and control of animal disease in those Member States. APHIS plans to 
identify AUs for the 10 new EU Member States as those countries are 
evaluated. In November 2004, APHIS' Veterinary Services (VS) conducted 
site visits to Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, and Lithuania, and site 
visits to Slovenia

[[Page 43839]]

and Estonia are planned for fall 2005. Site visits to the Czech 
Republic and Latvia are currently underway. VS plans to identify the 
appropriate AU for each of these Member States in the risk analyses 
that result from their evaluations. At this time, VS has not received 
sufficient information from Malta and Cyprus to begin its evaluations 
in those Member States.
    The EC also stated that the name of the Swedish governmental 
agencies mentioned on page 13 of the draft document were not correctly 
translated. We have corrected those errors in the finalized version of 
the document and use the proper translations provided by the EC. The 
final version of the document with those changes may be viewed on the 
Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ncie/reg-request.html. At the 
bottom of that Web site page, click on ``Information previously 
submitted by Regions requesting export approval and supporting 
documentation.'' At the next screen, click on the triangle beside 
``European Union/Not Specified/Classical Swine Fever,'' then click on 
the triangle beside ``Response by APHIS,'' which will reveal a link to 
the document.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 25th day of July 2005.
Elizabeth E. Gaston,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E5-4061 Filed 7-28-05; 8:45 am]
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